[D2 EE Open] Strolling

[Ryuuta Tsume]

Ryuuta Tsume casually swings back by the houses under construction, always liking to see something making progress. The sweltering day wears on her fine clothing and she walks quite slowly, attempting to find the best shade and making it last.

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

Taking a break from helping out with the crews, she'll see Monkhbaatar in hakama with his hair tied up around his head with a cloth. He seemed to be a bit messy with dirt and dust. After taking a drink he lets out a whistle calling Meushi over to him. Offering her an apple that he pulled from his folded kimono, he pats her on her head.

Eventually he notices the individually looking on and waves. Approaching with his horse following closely behind he smiles pleasantly. "Something I can help you with?" he asks. The dying light of the day reflects off of his glistening, perspiring skin.

[Ryuuta Tsume]

Tsume tries not to openly stare at the man.

"I have not made your acquaintance, samurai-sama."

I'm pretty sure that's a sword, but laboring so...I'd hate to do this twice in one day.

She offers a bow, but bites her lip as she does so.

The smell of horse is sharp at first, and there is something about a man engaged in honest labor but her eyes also look disapproving at the dirt and the dust.

I suppose many have been forced to lend a direct hand at home as well. I'm glad i'm in a more refined position.

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

"I am Shinjo Monkhbaatar," he says with a nod. "It's a pleasure to meet you." The look of disapproval isn't missed, and in response he pours a bit of water over himself and wipes away the bulk of it with a cloth he was using on his brow during his break.

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"I am Ryuuta Tsume. It is a good thing to meet one so dedicated to the progress of their clan's resettlement."

Now that he is clean it is even harder to avoid looking like a fishwife sizing up cuttings. Tsume turns her attention to the animal.

"And this is your...steed?"

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

"Yes, she is Meushi, my companion for five years now," he says with a nod. He also doesn't seem to mind being sized up. After all this is a miai and people were seeking good matches. Having a physical attraction can make a match that much better.

"She's been helping out here too. Helping move heavy piles of lumber and such," he says patting her on the neck. He wasn't going to press the Piranha into interacting with the horse but it was clear that he was okay with it.

"Ryuuta is the new Piranha clan right? I imagine there is a fair amount of construction going on in your clan's lands if so."

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"Oh, it is so. We have a lot of material to work with already, there were many ruins hidden among the trees that provide stone but there is so much to clear in order to facilitate travel and exchange in the forest."

Tsume holds out her hand and allows the horse to get a scent of her.

"My primary concern is with the routes and the flow of goods to where they are needed. It's vital work, and I am happy to do it in a place where fewer people are skilled in that sort of thing. They think of it as beneath them, but they don't get that everything that is beneath them holds them up."

She looks over him, appraising.

"It seems you take to the task with skill."

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

"I wouldn't say with skill," he says with a chuckle. "Just with effort. Much of what I'm doing here is moving materials around and helping to hold up supports while others do the more skilled work. With our numbers being what they are it helps to have the samurai pitch in every once in a while. We actually outnumber the heimin."

"But you sound like you have a mind that's well suited for logistics. A role that we find very important in the Unicorn. With poor logistics we wouldn't have lasted more than a few years outside the empire and probably never would have made it back. The Ide have been great for us."

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"It does amaze me that you and yours were able to travel as you were without support from landed peasants. Do you know much of the structures that provide food and goods among your people? I am always keen to learn. My ancestors have long provided for large difficult projects to the south, but never had they managed without a large stable structure beneath them."

If the horse does not shy, Tsume will gently pat the nose.

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

Meushi pushes her nose into Tsume's hand gently, happy to get attention.

"We got much of our food from trade or raising livestock. We raised goats, camels, and sheep and would trade away products that they produced like milk, cheese and wool as well as selling off excess animals after breeding seasons to get crops from gaijin cultures such as wheat, oat, rice, fruits and vegetables. That rounded out our diets so that we had plenty of different things to eat and didn't become malnourished from surviving on only one source of food. Our structures are also designed to be both resilient and mobile, with standardized pieces for constructing fences and yurts."

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"I do appreciate the thrift of being able to take your home with you where you go. While I cannot use the design at home in the forest, I do think it has many applications which could revolutionize the way we react to disruptions, such as fires and floods. Imagine if a city could move away from rising water."

Tsume pondered while idly scratching the friendly horse behind the ears.

"Oh...what is a camel?"

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

"They're animals of the desert. Similar in stature to a horse, though a bit larger with longer necks, and they have a large hump on their back made of fatty material that will keep them hydrated. They can go a long time without water, and are strong capable pack animals. Though most of the ones we had were traded away for long term food supplies for the last leg of the great ride. They are desert dwellers at heart and they likely would not do so well here. Plus... they can spook horses if the horses aren't properly socialized with them."

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"Hmm...perhaps it would be a boon for the Kuni. Their lands are dry and blighted. Do you and yours still own some?"

Tsume thinks about it a bit while still petting the horse absently.

"Getting them there would of course be the issue."

[Shinjo Monkhbaatar]

"I don't think we have any here in Dark Edge, but there may be some elsewhere. But then, there may be some here too. I don't know for sure. I haven't seen one for a while," he admits. "It's something that could be looked into though, for sure. And getting them there would really just be a matter of time. They wouldn't have any issues that a horse wouldn't have."

[Ryuuta Tsume]

"What do you do when you're not putting up buildings, Shinjo-san?"

Tsume looks back to him from the horse.